Related Stories

Lunar eclipse Stay up late on Saturday night and you could be treated to a blood red Moon, that's if cloudy weather doesn't spoil your view.

Weather permitting, this weekend's total lunar eclipse will be visible across all of Australia, starting at 11:45 pm (AEDT) on Saturday night and lasting until just before 3:20 am (AEDT) Sunday morning.

"[The Moon] will be just below the constellation of Orion, which many people know as 'the saucepan'," says astronomer Dr Tanya Hill from the Melbourne Planetarium.

The eclipse will be at its most spectacular at just after 1:06 am (AEDT) on Sunday when the Earth's shadow falls directly across the Moon causing a total eclipse - known as totality.

"When the shadow first starts to move across the Moon it's quite dark but by the time you go into totality you're getting scattered light through the atmosphere that will brighten up the Moon and make it appear reddish," says Hill.

Just what kind of light show you'll see depends on the atmosphere.

"At the moment our atmosphere is very clear," says Hill.

"Atmospheric scientists are predicting that a lot of light is going to come through and cause a reddish glow, and in fact, there may even be a blueish tinge around the edge if light gets through the upper atmosphere," she says.

But, at 51 minutes, the total eclipse is very short compared to previous eclipses, says Hill.

"Generally eclipses are around an hour. The longest lunar eclipse goes up to an hour and forty minutes, so it is on a bit of a short side for an eclipse," she says.

While there will be a partial eclipse visible across Australia in June next year, you will have to wait until April 2014 to see the next total lunar eclipse.

"Generally there are two or three eclipses each year so somewhere on the planet you can see it, but we've got a bit of a wait before we see our next total lunar eclipse," she says.

Weather to spoil the party

While the upper atmosphere might be primed for the eclipse, the weather forecast for most of the country is expected to dampen the night for many.

Dey predicts that the best places to see the eclipse will be Central Australia, the Nullarbor or the Kimberley.

"Unfortunately the eastern part [of Australia] where we have the most population is not looking good, because we will have a trough of low pressure over much of the south-eastern part of the continent," he says.

Dey adds there is predicted to be a monsoonal trough across the north of the country and a trough of low pressure sitting off Western Australia. These are expected to bring clouds and rain, blocking out any chance of viewing this lunar spectacular for most of the country.

Evidence of hot springs discovered on the Saturnian moon Enceladus. Also; the Milky Way at least 50 per cent bigger than previously thought, and a new population of dwarf satellite galaxies discovered orbiting the Milky Way.